


Don't Ask Don't Tell

by catastrophage



Series: In Memory of Troy [2]
Category: Fear the Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Bullying, Cowboys, Domestic Violence, Language, M/M, Masturbation, Mildly Dubious Consent, Mutual Masturbation, One-Sided Attraction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-14
Updated: 2018-03-14
Packaged: 2019-03-31 04:03:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13966929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catastrophage/pseuds/catastrophage
Summary: Mike and Troy went for a ride - they used to do it more back in their teens. They would leave the ranch, drive the cattle to another patch of grass and search for a place out there, where it was just the two of them...Once in a while, way the hell out in the middle of nowhere.This ficlet expands Day 10 of theDiary of Sorts, but can also be read as a stand-alone.





	Don't Ask Don't Tell

**Author's Note:**

> As a warning - I'm experimenting with time here (hah) and use a lot of flashbacks. I hope it's not too confusing. I wanted to keep the frame story in the apocalypse, but a lot of the things that happen happened before. You'll learn a bit about their past, that much I promise.  
> I did _not_ mark the story underage, because where it matters the boys are around 16/17 and old enough to do what they do. But if it troubles you to read about teenagers exploring their bodies with mildly dubious consent, please stop here.  
>  The song that inspired me to do this was _America - A Horse With No Name._  
>  And I want to send some hugs to ToastyMage. Just because.

**Don't Ask Don't Tell**

It was the eighth day Mike Trimbol was back on the ranch. After graduating with best grades from Twin Palms High, he had been accepted at the UCLA School of Medicine. It had been the first time he had left the ranch for long. He had a room at his school in Los Angeles, and stayed there for at least eight months a year. It had also been the first time he had been away from Troy.  
Troy had always dragged him down, in the most entertaining ways. Mike had many memories of the things they'd do together. One day they had cut the wires of their fathers cars, so they couldn't be brought to school - which was a one hour drive from the ranch down in the nearest city. Oh man, had the old Otto been angry! Troy was beaten black and blue the next day. And still they were brought to school by Vernon in his RV. They were sitting in the back of the trailer, pretending to go on a beach vacation instead. "We're going to Salton Sea!" Troy had said with a chuckle. "Salton Sea stinks like rotten eggs," Mike had answered. "Not today Mikey. Today it doesn't stink."

Mike still remembered how devastated he had been when Troy got expelled. If he had known he had been using that knife, he had taken it away from him. But he had no clue. It had only been when the teachers got called to the back of the building, that he saw Troy in a group of bullies, threatening another boy's life. Troy had been furious, Mike could tell. And yet he had been smiling.  
It wasn't until way later that Mike understood Troy had probably just kept the boy away from him. The kid tried to make Mike's life a hell, just one week after Troy left. Called him names, spread rumors. They had never talked about it.

Troy had been waiting for Mike's return every day. Often he stood at the gates when Mike was brought home - or when he drove home himself as soon as he was old enough. Sometimes Troy had taken his red pickup to meet Mike in town, pretending to be assigned to get supplies. He had offered to bring him to school and take him back home again, so he wouldn't be alone. Mike had turned down his offer. "It's what couples do. We're not a couple."

A long time had passed since. Mike left the ranch for college three years ago. And now he was back because a goddamn zombie apocalypse had started in LA. Whatever it had been their fathers had been prepared for, it clearly wasn't _this_.  
At least life on the ranch was still the same. Aside from a couple of newcomers nothing had changed. And so it was this morning on the eighth day, that Mike stood in the stables, grooming the family's horses. He looked up when he heard a noise from the door. It was Troy - he just stood there, leaned against the door frame not saying a word, head tilted, with a slight smile on his lips. They looked at each other, as if they were trying to read thoughts. Eventually, Troy pushed himself forwards and approached Mike. "Brings back memories, huh?"  
Back in the day they had often gone for a ride through the desert. They had offered to drive the cattle to another wild field, to get out of the ranch for a day or two. "We haven't done this in a while," Troy murmured and reached for a currycomb to help Mike. "Playing cowboys?" Mike chuckled. Troy stopped grooming the horse to stare at him. "But we _are_ fucking cowboys."  
Sure - the term had to be stretched a little. Technically the cattle was mostly Jeremiah's and the horses belonged to the Trimbols. Nobody needed to sit on a horse to drive the cattle, they had enough cars on the ranch. Nor were they crossing the whole country, just taking the stock from field to field. But when Troy didn't get much of a chance to leave the ranch, he had started to take a little pride in his old western image. "Want me to bring my hat?" he offered. "Doesn't suit you," Mike taunted him. "No worse than your hipster beard," Troy countered. 

It was the first time in months that they went for a ride together. Troy still pointed out how much they were like old western cowboys with their plaid shirts and revolvers, and that he'd absolutely look for a pair of good boots and spurs when they could go to town again. He ignored Mike when he said that the apocalypse didn't need cowboys.  
It had always been like this. They acted like brothers - not particularly friendly, and still they knew they could trust each other.  
And then they were in the desert. No more houses in sight, no cars, no people - just two young men and their horses. "I've missed this," Troy said quietly.

Sure - it had always been exciting to drive the cattle through the gates, and then try to keep them on the road. To find a good spot, and circle the herd to move it there. When they were riding ahead of the herd, sometimes they had made short races. But the best was when the cattle was moved, work was done and it was just the two of them, looking for a place to rest.  
They found a spot on the side of a hill, a small plateau, some shade for the horses. Mike had brought some apples, he tossed one over to Troy, and fed two others to their mounts. "I'm not a horse," Troy joked but started eating anyway. "I mean I would like you to ride me," he whispered. Mike didn't react and Troy didn't repeat it. If he had not heard it... it probably was better anyway. It would have been hard to mark that as part of the joke, and he didn't want Mike to be awkward around him so soon.

This was different back in the day. When they still were teenagers, hitting puberty full force, they would make all the dirty jokes out here. Mike would talk about the girls at school, and Troy would listen half-heartedly. He had never really liked them, and they had never really liked him. But he listened because Mike seemed so happy when he could talk without having to worry about who'd hear him.  
And then one night it had happened, far on the other side of the territory. They had brought their little tent and stayed the night, because they enjoyed staying away from the ranch whenever they could. Mike had been talking about the girls at high school on the way. _Jessica - Jessica is the best. She's a redhead, and so cute with her freckles,_ all day. They went to sleep, wondering if _Jessica_ had freckles on her breasts, and eventually Mike went silent. Troy assumed Mike had fallen asleep and rolled on his side to sleep as well, when he heard a rhythmic rustle from the other boy's sleeping bag. At first he just listened how Mike's breath went faster, felt the heat his body radiated. And then, slowly so he wouldn't be heard, he reached down to touch himself as well. But it wasn't Jessica he was thinking about.

That year they went out a lot. Troy revived his interest in the desert's ecosystem and was eager to find some rocks, plants and dead animals he could take home and add to his collection. He convinced Mike he needed to find the carcass of a bobcat or gray fox someday. And while all these were honest interests of the boy, he also really was looking forward to the nights.  
It was their fourth or fifth time out alone the year, Troy was wearing his cowboy hat against the aggressive sun and Mike had a backpack full of straw and carrots for the horses. It was getting dark and Troy decided to call it a day and search for a place to build up the tent, when he started to ask Mike about Jessica. "You remember the girl with the freckles?" Mike stopped his horse and stared at Troy. "What's it with you and Jessica? You don't even know her and yet every time we're out here you ask me about her."  
Troy shrugged. "I figured you like her. And I like when you talk about things you like."  
They both went silent. Awkwardly silent, Troy noticed, when the tent was ready and Mike prepared a fire. He reached out to touch the smaller teen's shoulder. "Let's do that later. I want to talk first."  
Mike shot up a glare. "About Jessica?" Troy nodded, hesitantly. He crawled into the tent and sat down in a comfortable position. "Imagine she's here Mike. Imagine Jessica is in here and waiting for you."  
"I know you've been watching me." Now it was out. Mike had turned towards the tent, as he said it, but he was still pondering whether he should give Troy's offer a try. Troy didn't make a sound either. His heart had started racing on Mike's remark, but nothing else happened. He didn't sound angry, if anything a little annoyed. So after minutes passed that felt like hours, he tried it again. "Come in, lie down and close your eyes. It will be good I promise."  
And Mike complied. He entered the tent, sat down and stared at Troy for a moment, trying to figure if his friend had lost his mind. But Troy was serious and Mike was curious what it would feel like. "Give me a moment," he mumbled while lying down in the small space and closing his eyes. "Tell me about her smile. Her wonderfully green eyes, and the freckles all over her cheeks and shoulders," Troy helped. "And her hands, are they soft? Does she have freckles on her hands as well?"

Troy's hands were skillful, when they unbuckled Mike's belt and opened his pants. He had done this so many times before in his thoughts, had watched Mike undress so many nights out here... Mike's moans, now that he didn't need to restrain them anymore, sent shivers through Troy's legs. They didn't last long. Mike came with Jessica's name on his lips, and Troy came with a whimper, when he stroke himself through his pants. They didn't talk about it afterwards. Mike hurried outside to clean up himself and in the dim light of the evening Troy could have sworn he had seen his face was red. He never dared to ask if it had been good.

Surprisingly, though, it had not been the last night. A couple of weeks they had been awkward around each other out alone, but then Mike started asking Troy. "Don't you want to talk about Jessica again?"  
It was a thing just between the two of them, just out in the desert, never at home. Eventually Mike didn't need to hear about his girl anymore. She had turned out to have a bad personality anyway. They just quietly agreed it was time to withdraw to the tent, and then started touching each other. And while Troy had never asked for it, Mike had insisted to return him the favor of letting him feel another hand than his own.

Troy had missed this intimacy with Mike when the other boy left for college and grew up to be a bearded young man. The youngest Otto had stopped riding, he just used his pickup to drive behind the herd when he needed to move it, and let Jake lead it. He had never found a desert bobcat either.  
Now Mike was back, but it was all... different. They couldn't spend the night out here anyway, even if it was unlikely any infected people from the cities found their way here, the risk was still too high and their help was needed at the ranch. But it did bring back memories. "Hey Mike?" Troy asked, looking at his half-eaten apple like it was some piece of treasure. "What happened to Jessica? Do you think she's still alive?"

Mike looked at him perplexed, then shrugged and sat down next to him. "That's years ago, Troy. Time to get over her. I've met new girls in LA."  
Troy was a little confused about his answer. He had never thought about what would happen in LA. To imagine Mike had been out there dating girls like what he felt didn't mean anything hurt a bit. But then again, it was the most likely thing to happen. "Want to talk about the new girls?" Troy offered, but Mike shook his head. He lay a hand on Troy's shoulder, a friendly gesture. "You'll find a boy you like who likes you back," he tried to cheer him up. "And if you do, don't talk about girls."  
Even though Troy's heart broke a little the day, they both smiled when they returned home. It was another secret they shared, another milestone of their friendship.


End file.
